Method and apparatus for mobile stem wall

ABSTRACT

A stem wall is provided by manufacturing the stem wall and then transporting the stem wall to the house site for placement. Preferably, the stem wall is manufactured within an enclosed facility. Further, the stem wall is preferably manufactured at a location which does not require transporting the stem wall via public roadways to the house site. The stem wall can be manufactured by pouring concrete into a mold. Tension cables can be positioned within the mold and tightened after the concrete cures to provide increased tensile strength. The stem wall can be formed with one or more horizontal openings. Beams or pegs can be inserted through the horizontal openings to facilitate transportation of the stem wall to the house site. Before the stem wall is transported to the house site, a house can be built or placed on top of the stem wall.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is related to U.S. application Ser. No. 11/431,196,entitled “BUILDING TRANSPORT DEVICE”, filed May 9, 2006, and U.S.application Ser. No. 11/559,229, entitled “TRANSPORT DEVICE CAPABLE OFADJUSTMENT TO MAINTAIN LOAD PLANARITY”, filed Nov. 13, 2006 the entirecontents of both of which are herein incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND

One foundation technique frequently used in home building is toconstruct a stem wall. A stem wall anchors a home firmly in the ground,working like roots to hold a house down and tie it into the groundbelow. Further, the stem wall, being positioned around the perimeter ofthe house, provides support for the exterior load bearing walls of thehome. It should be noted the stem wall can also provide support forinterior load bearing walls or any non-load bearing walls.

A stem wall is constructed in place at the home site. Typically, thestem wall is constructed of concrete masonry or cinder block reinforcedwith steel and concrete. The home site is excavated and compacted usingnew fill. Then, a footing trench is excavated around the footprint ofthe house. The footing size is typically 12 to 16 inches wide by 8 to 12inches deep. The concrete footing is poured, typically with reinforcingsteel extending up from the footing. Sometimes, when the concrete of thefooting sets up, the first course of block is set in place.

A stem wall is typically three masonry courses high. Every set number ofinches, which varies depending on code and the height of the wall, theblocks are fitted with steel rebar for reinforcement. Further, concreteis poured into the block cells. Once the three-course wall is in place,dirt is backfilled against the exterior of the stem wall.

The house can be placed on and attached to the stem wall, leaving acrawl space beneath the house. Alternatively, the interior of the stemwall can also be backfilled and compacted to serve as the base for aconcrete slab.

If a slab is to be formed, typically the cells for the stem walls arefilled with concrete at the same time the slab is poured, as onecontinuous pour. When the cells are filled for the wall, the slab ispoured as the top layer or seal for the walls. The reinforcing steel orrebar extends above the wall and slab for the tie-in to the walls. Tiesand anchor bolts are wet set in the concrete so that they are completelytied into the structure.

Stem walls formed in such a way provide a very stable foundation whichprotects from damage even in rising waters, seismic events, and highwinds. However, it is desirable to improve the efficiency of formingstem walls.

SUMMARY

In one embodiment, a stem wall is manufactured and then transported tothe house site for placement. Preferably, the stem wall is manufacturedwithin an enclosed facility; however, the stem wall can be manufacturedoutdoors or in any other suitable location. Further, the stem wall ispreferably manufactured at a location which does not requiretransporting the stem wall via public roadways to the house site;however, the stem wall can be manufactured at a location for whichtransporting the stem wall to the house site via public roadways wouldbe necessary or desirable.

In one embodiment, the stem wall is manufactured by pouring concreteinto a mold. Tension cables (e.g., high strength steel tension cables orany other suitable type of tension cable) are positioned within the moldand are stressed after the concrete cures to provide increased tensilestrength. It should be noted that other reinforcement devices (e.g.,steel rebar or any other suitable reinforcing device) can also bepositioned within the mold. In one embodiment, the stem wall is formedwith one or more horizontal openings. Beams or pegs can be insertedthrough the horizontal openings to facilitate transportation of the stemwall to the house site.

In another embodiment, exterior face attachment points (e.g., exteriorbrackets, protrusions or any other suitable graspable structure) areattached to one or more exterior surfaces of the stem wall. The exteriorface attachment points can be attached after concrete is poured into themold or can be positioned with the mold such that the exterior faceattachment points are formed as a continuous part of the stem wall.

In one embodiment, before the stem wall is transported to the housesite, a house is built or placed on top of the stem wall. Preferably,the house is secured to the stem wall; however, the house is notrequired to be secured to the stem wall.

In one embodiment, the ground at the house site is excavated andcompacted. The stem wall is then transported to and placed at the housesite. Optionally, a trench or caisson can be dug and a footer or postformed on which the stem wall can be positioned; however, such anin-place footer or post is not required. Alternatively, the compactedground can be excavated in parts to enable a bottom portion of the stemwall to be positioned within the excavated parts. In another embodiment,the stem wall is merely positioned on top of the ground. Once in place,the stem wall is preferably at least partly buried by backfilling.

Additional features and advantages are described herein, and will beapparent from, the following Detailed Description and the figures.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

FIG. 1 is a flow diagram of the process of placing a stem wall at a homesite in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a flow diagram of the process of placing a stem wall formedfrom poured concrete at a home site in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a diagram of a portion of a stem wall having an exterior faceattachment point in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a flow diagram of the process of placing a stem wall formedfrom poured concrete at a home site using a dual vehicle transportationsystem in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a flow diagram of the process of placing a stem wall and houseat a home site in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a diagram of a mobile stem wall in accordance with oneembodiment.

FIG. 7 is a diagram of an interior wall of a mobile stem wall inaccordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a diagram of an exterior wall of a mobile stem wall inaccordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a diagram of an exterior wall of a mobile stem wall having ahorizontal opening in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a diagram of a segment of a mobile stem wall with a sub-floorand floor in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a diagram of a mobile stem wall with a sub-floor and floorpositioned at a structure site in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a diagram of a segment of a mobile stem wall showing a crosssection of an interior wall in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a cross section of an interior wall of a mobile stem wall inaccordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a cross section of an exterior wall of a mobile stem wall inaccordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 15 is a diagram of cross sections of different stem wallconfigurations in accordance with various embodiments.

FIG. 16 is a diagram of a floor/sub-floor attached to one or morehangers supported by a stem wall in accordance with one embodiment ofthe present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In one embodiment, a stem wall is manufactured and then transported inany suitable manner to the house site for placement. Preferably, thestem wall is manufactured within an enclosed facility; however, the stemwall can be manufactured outdoors or in any other suitable location.Further, the stem wall is preferably manufactured at a location whichdoes not require transporting the stem wall via public roadways to thehouse site; however, the stem wall can be manufactured at a location forwhich transporting the stem wall to the house site via public roadwayswould be necessary or desirable. Further still, the stem wall can haveany suitable dimensions, including, but not limited to: those whichwould provide a foundation for a house or other structure that is toolarge to transport over public roads due to legal, physical or any otherlimitation; those having length and width dimensions such that thesmaller of the length and width dimensions is greater than 16 feet; andthose which would support a multiple story structure. It should be notedthat a stem wall can also be transported to a site (i.e., a structuresite) for any suitable type of structure (e.g., a townhouse row, acommercial facility, an apartment complex, an agricultural building,etc.) and that house or home sites are a subset of structure sites.

FIG. 1 illustrates the process of placing a stem wall at a home site inaccordance with one embodiment. At step 100, a stem wall is manufacturedas a one-piece unit. At step 102, the stem wall is transported to thehouse site. At step 104, the stem wall is placed at the house site.

In one embodiment, the stem wall is manufactured by pouring concreteinto a mold. Preferably, the mold includes one or more mold sections.Mold sections can be of any suitable configuration (e.g., right anglecorners, T-intersections, cross intersections, straight sections, curvedsections, any suitable corner joint joining any suitable number of wallportions arranged at any suitable angle) and can have any suitablelength or dimensions; however, a segmented mold is not required, and amold can be built in a non-modular or even non reusable manner. To builda mold, suitable segments are selected and arranged together. The moldcan have any suitable shape, and preferably at least includes theperimeter of the eventual house which will rest upon the stem wall;however, the mold is not required to include the perimeter of theeventual house and can include internal walls running between exteriorwalls or other interior walls.

Typically, the concrete is a mixture of cement and a sand and/or gravelaggregate; however, the concrete can be any suitable mixture including,but not limited to, those having a lighter weight aggregate such aspumice, scoria, volcanic cinders, tuff, diatomite, heated/processedclay, heated/processed shale, heated/processed slate, heated/processeddiatomaceous shale, heated/processed perlite, heated/processed obsidian,heated/processed vermiculite, or industrial cinders, Styrofoam, plasticor ceramic beads or nuggets, blast-furnace slag that has been speciallycooled and/or mixtures including foaming agents such as aluminum powder(which produces gas while the concrete is still plastic) or other pocketforming materials. Alternatively the stem wall can be manufactured fromcement or by layering cinder blocks with rebar inserts and concrete orcement filling as is typical of stem walls formed at the house site orin any other suitable manner using any other suitable substance.

Preferably, tension cables are positioned within the mold and arestressed after the concrete cures to provide increased tensile strength;however tension cables are not required and the stem wall can beunreinforced or reinforced with any suitable component such as rebar ora wire mesh or any combination of suitable reinforcement components.

FIG. 2 illustrates the process of placing a stem wall formed from pouredconcrete at a home site in accordance with one embodiment. At step 200,a mold for the stem wall is assembled from mold modules. At step 202, aplurality of tension cables are placed within the mold. At step 204,concrete is poured into the mold and allowed to cure. At step 206, thestem wall is released from the mold. At step 208, the tension cables aretightened. At step 210, the stem wall is transported to the house site.At step 212, the stem wall is placed at the house site. It should beappreciated that in other embodiments, the order of some of the abovesteps (e.g., the curing, the tightening and the releasing) are performedin a different order.

In one embodiment, the stem wall is formed with one or more horizontalopenings. Beams or pegs can be inserted through the horizontal openingsto facilitate transportation of the stem wall to the house site.Preferably, the openings are configured such that a beam can extendthrough two exterior walls of the stem wall; however, such aconfiguration is not required. In an alternative embodiment, instead ofor in addition to the horizontal openings, one or more protrudingmembers are formed extending from one or more exterior walls of the stemwall. The protruding member can be part of the mold and poured similarto the rest of the stem wall. Alternatively, a beam (e.g., a steel Ibeam) is positioned with the mold such that when the stem wall ispoured, a portion of the beam extends beyond the exterior surface of thestem wall.

In another alternative embodiment, exterior face attachment points(e.g., exterior brackets, protrusions or any other suitable graspablestructure) are attached to one or more exterior surfaces of the stemwall. The exterior face attachment points can be attached after concreteis poured into the mold or can be positioned with the mold such that theexterior face attachment points are formed as a continuous part of thestem wall. FIG. 3 shows a portion of a stem wall 300 having an exteriorface attachment point 302. The exterior face attachment point 302includes an embedded steel plate 304 to which an external bracket 306can be mounted or attached (e.g., by bolting, welding or any othersuitable attachment mechanism). The external bracket 306 can have anysuitable configuration and is preferably operable with one or more otherattachment points to enable one or more transportation vehicles to graspand/or lift the stem wall 300.

In one embodiment, after the stem wall is formed, it is transported toand positioned at the house site. Preferably, one or more groundtransportation devices are coupled to the stem wall by gripping thebeams or other objects (e.g., cables, brackets, etc.) inserted throughthe horizontal holes; however, the devices can be coupled to the stemwall in any other suitable manner, including but not limited to byinserting pegs of the devices into the horizontal holes or by grippingone or protruding members or exterior attachment points described above.It should be noted that the stem wall is not required to be transportedby a ground vehicle and that the stem wall can be transported by an airvehicle (e.g., a helicopter), a water vehicle (e.g., a barge) or anyother suitable vehicle (e.g., a crane, an amphibious craft, etc.).

FIG. 4 illustrates the process of placing a stem wall formed from pouredconcrete at a home site using a dual vehicle transportation system inaccordance with one embodiment. At step 400, a mold for the stem wall isassembled from mold modules. At step 402, a plurality of tension cables(e.g., high strength steel tension cables) are placed within the mold.It should be noted that one or more other reinforcement devices (e.g.,rebar, wire mesh, etc.) can also be placed within the mold. At step 404,concrete is poured into the mold and allowed to cure. At step 406, thestem wall is released from the mold. At step 408, the tension cables arestressed. At step 410, beams are inserted through holes in one side ofthe stem wall, extended through the interior of the stem wall andthrough corresponding holes in the opposite side of the stem wall. Itshould be noted, the holes are not required, and other suitablelifting/supporting mechanisms can be implemented, including but notlimited to protrusions, exterior face attachment points, and/or anyother suitable lifting and/or supporting mechanism. At step 412, a setof ground transportation vehicles are coupled to the beams. At step 414,the stem wall is transported, supported by the beams, to the house site.At step 416, the stem wall is placed at the house site. At step 418, theset of vehicles disengage from the beams. The beams can be removed orcan remain extending through the stem wall.

Once positioned at the house site, the interior portion of the stem wallcan be filled and compacted; however, the filling and compacting is notrequired and the interior portion can be left as a crawl space. Aconcrete or any other suitable slab can be poured integral with the stemwall; however, such a slab is not required. Then, a house or otherstructure can be built or placed upon the stem wall. The stem wall canbe attached to the house, slab or other structure in any suitablemanner, including, but not limited to, pouring onto protrusions (e.g.,rebar or wire mesh) from the stem wall, caulk, tar, or other adhesivesor bonding agents, anchors bored or placed during formation into thestem wall, bolts, epoxies or any other suitable joining substances orstructures.

In another embodiment, before the stem wall is transported to the housesite, a house is built or placed on top of the stem wall. Preferably,the house is secured to the stem wall in any suitable manner, includingthose described above for a site-built or attached house; however, thehouse is not required to be secured to the stem wall. In one embodiment,the stem wall is placed or formed on skates which are operable totransport the stem wall within a home or other structure manufacturingfacility or site; however, the stem wall can be transported within thefacility or site in any suitable manner (e.g., rails, cranes, vehicles,air cushion, dollies, reduced friction surfaces, etc.) or remainstationary until being transported to the home site. Alternatively, astem wall can be manufactured at one facility or site and transported toone or more other facilities or sites at which a house is at leastpartly built of placed upon the stem wall before the stem wall istransported to and placed at the house site.

Preferably, the stem wall is moved on the skates from station tostation, and at each station one or more portions of the house orstructure is built on or added to the stem wall/house structure.However, the stem wall is not required to be moved from station tostation. The stem wall can remain substantially in one position whilehouse or other structure is placed or built upon the stem wall. Forexample, a full-sized house (e.g., a non-roadable house, a mini-mansion,houses larger than mobile homes, etc.) can be built or assembled withinthe facility or brought to the facility and attached to the stem wall.Alternatively, a full-sized house can be built in any suitable manner(e.g., stick building, panelized building, modular building) onto thestem wall. Further it should be noted that alternatively, a smallerdwelling such as a mobile home can be placed or built upon the stemwall. It should also be noted that structures other than houses(including but not limited to townhouse rows, apartment buildings,commercial structures, agricultural buildings or any other suitablestructure) can be placed or build upon the stem wall.

In one embodiment, after the stem wall and house are coupled, the stemwall and house are transported to the house site in any suitable manner,including, but not limited to, those described above for transportingthe stem wall. Alternatively or additionally, transporting the stem walland house can include coupling a moving apparatus (e.g., one or morevehicles, a crane, etc.) to a structure of the house, a protrusion fromthe house, an opening into the house, any of the mechanisms described inco-pending U.S. patent application Ser. Nos. 11/431,196 and 11/559,229,the entire contents of both of which are incorporated herein, or anyother suitable mechanism for grasping the house as well as or instead ofthe stem wall.

FIG. 5 illustrates the process of placing a stem wall and house at ahome site in accordance with one embodiment. At step 500, a mold for thestem wall is assembled from mold modules. At step 502, a plurality oftension cables are placed within the mold. It should be noted that oneor more of any other suitable reinforcement mechanism can also beinserted into the mold. At step 504, concrete is poured into the moldand allowed to cure. At step 506, the stem wall is released from themold. At step 508, the tension cables are stressed. At step 510, a houseis built upon the stem wall. It should be noted that the house canalternatively be built and then placed upon the stem wall. At step 512,the stem wall and house are transported to the house site. At step 514,the stem wall and house are placed at the house site.

In one embodiment, the ground at the house site is excavated andcompacted. The stem wall is then transported to and placed at the housesite. Optionally, a trench, column, caisson or pier can be dug and afooter or post formed on which the stem wall can be positioned; however,a such an in-place footer or post is not required. If such an in-placefooter or column is formed, the stem wall is preferably placed thereonbefore the footer or column has set. Further, one or more protrusions(e.g., rebar or wire mesh) from the stem wall are preferably insertedinto the footer, column or caisson when the stem wall is placed.However, such protrusions are not required and the column or footer canbe allowed to set before the stem wall is placed upon it.

Alternatively, the compacted ground can be excavated in parts to enablea bottom portion of the stem wall to be positioned within the excavatedparts. In another embodiment, the stem wall is merely positioned on topof the ground. Once in place, the stem wall is preferably at leastpartly buried by backfilling; however, the stem wall is not required tobe even partly buried. Further, the stem wall is preferably buried to alevel sufficiently high to cover one or more openings and/or protrusionsused in transporting the stem wall to the house site; however, it is notrequired to bury such openings and/or protrusions, if any.

FIGS. 6-11 illustrate a stem wall 600 in accordance with one embodiment.The stem wall 600 had exterior walls 602 forming a substantiallyrectangular shape. The stem wall 600 also includes interior walls 604which provide additional support for interior house walls and/or supportfor the longer exterior walls 602. A floor/sub-floor 606 rests upon theinterior 604 and exterior 602 walls.

The floor/sub-floor 606 is separated from the interior wall 604 by aspacer 608. The spacer 608 is preferably more compressible than thematerial used to form the stem wall 600 and can include wood, plastic orany other suitable material; however, spacer 608 is not required to bemore compressible than the material used to form the stem wall 600.Further, the spacer 608 can include a material that joins thefloor/sub-floor 606 and the interior wall 604, such as tar, caulk, epoxyor any other suitable bonding or adhering material.

The floor/sub-floor 606 is also separated from the exterior wall 602 bya spacer 610. The spacer 610 is preferably more compressible than thematerial used to form the stem wall 600 and can include wood, plastic orany other suitable material; however, spacer 610 is not required to bemore compressible than the material used to form the stem wall 600.Further, the spacer 610 can include a material that joins thefloor/sub-floor 606 and the exterior wall 602, such as tar, caulk, epoxyor any other suitable bonding or adhering material. Above the exteriorwalls 602 are the exterior house walls 612. Further, at least one of theexterior walls 602 includes a female structure tube 614, into which abeam or peg can be inserted for transporting the stem wall 600 asdescribed above. It should be noted that instead of or in addition tothe tube 614, the stem wall 600 can include one or more protrusions orexterior surface attachment points.

FIGS. 12-14 illustrate an alternative configuration for a stem wall 700.The interior wall 702 has an upper portion 704 which includes two lowertop surfaces 706 and one upper top surface 708. Preferably, the stemportion 710 extending above the lower top surfaces 706 to the upper topsurface 708 is positioned within the floor/sub-floor such that thefloor/sub-floor rests on each of the upper top surface 708 and lower topsurfaces 706. Further, the floor/sub-floor can contact and/or beattached to the sides of stem portion 710 in any suitable manner,including but not limited to bolts, anchors, caulk, adhesives, or anyother suitable joining mechanism or substance.

The exterior wall 712 has an upper portion 714 which includes a lowertop surface 716 and an upper top surface 718. Preferably, the stemportion 720 extending above the lower top surface 716 to the upper topsurface 718 is positioned such that the floor/sub-floor rests on boththe upper top surface 718 and lower top surface 716. Further, thefloor/sub-floor can contact and/or be attached to the interior side ofstem portion 720 in any suitable manner, including but not limited tobolts, anchors, caulk, adhesives, or any other suitable joiningmechanism or substance. The exterior side of stem portion 720 is exposedto the ground and/or air outside the stem wall 700.

It should be noted that a stem wall can have any suitable configuration.FIG. 15 illustrates cross sections of different suitable stem wallconfigurations 800A-800D. Further, is should be appreciated that thefloor/sub-floor can be positioned on a hanger supported by the stemwall. FIG. 16 illustrates a floor/sub-floor 900 that is attached to oneor more hangers 902. The hangers 902 are supported by a portion of thestem wall 904 and can be made from any suitable substance (e.g., steel),can be attached to the stem wall 904 and/or the floor/sub-floor 900 inany suitable manner, and can have any suitable configuration.

It should be appreciated that in various embodiments, the interior ofthe stem wall could be filled (e.g., with concrete or cement), forming amobile slab. The interior can be filled as part of forming the stem wall(making the stem wall and slab one continuous, possiblyindistinguishable, piece), or subsequent to forming the stem wall.Similar to embodiments described above, the mobile slab can betransported to the house site with or without a house placed or built onthe slab. Further, in various embodiments, the slab has one or morepockets or holes which reduce the weight of the slab.

It should also be appreciated that any dimensions described above orprovided in the drawings are for exemplary purposes and that therespective objects can have any suitable size, shape and configuration.

It should be understood that various changes and modifications to thepresently preferred embodiments described herein will be apparent tothose skilled in the art. Such changes and modifications can be madewithout departing from the spirit and scope of the present subjectmatter and without diminishing its intended advantages. It is thereforeintended that such changes and modifications be covered by the appendedclaims.

1. A foundation made by a process comprising: forming a stem wallstructure; transporting the stem wall structure to a structure site; andplacing the stem wall structure at the structure site.
 2. The foundationof claim 1, wherein forming the stem wall structure includes creating amold.
 3. The foundation of claim 2, wherein forming the stem wallstructure includes pouring a concrete mixture into the mold.
 4. Thefoundation of claim 3, wherein the concrete mixture includes a lightweight aggregate or a foaming agent.
 5. The foundation of claim 2,wherein forming the stem wall structure includes inserting a tensioncable in the mold and stressing the tension cable.
 6. The foundation ofclaim 1, wherein the stem wall structure includes an exterior surfaceattachment point or a protrusion.
 7. The foundation of claim 1, whereinthe stem wall structure includes a horizontal hole extending at leastpart way through one wall of the stem wall structure.
 8. The foundationof claim 7, wherein transporting the stem wall structure includesinserting a member into the horizontal hole.
 9. The foundation of claim8, wherein the member is a beam.
 10. The foundation of claim 1, whereinthe process further comprises: attaching a full-sized house to the stemwall structure.
 11. The foundation of claim 1, wherein the stem wallstructure is transported substantially as one connected piece.
 12. Amethod of providing a foundation for a structure comprising: forming astem wall structure; transporting the stem wall structure to a structuresite; and placing the stem wall structure at the structure site.
 13. Themethod of claim 12, wherein forming the stem wall structure includescreating a mold.
 14. The method of claim 13, wherein forming the stemwall structure includes pouring a concrete mixture into the mold. 15.The method of claim 14, wherein the concrete mixture includes a lightweight aggregate or a foaming agent.
 16. The method of claim 13, whereinforming the stem wall structure includes inserting a tension cable inthe mold and stressing the tension cable.
 17. The method of claim 12,wherein the stem wall structure includes an exterior surface attachmentpoint or a protrusion.
 18. The method of claim 12, wherein the stem wallstructure includes a horizontal hole extending at least part way throughone wall of the stem wall structure.
 19. The method of claim 18, whereintransporting the stem wall structure includes inserting a member intothe horizontal hole.
 20. The method of claim 19, wherein the member is abeam.
 21. The method of claim 12, further comprising: attaching thestructure to the stem wall structure.
 22. The method of claim 21,wherein the structure is attached to the stem wall structure at thestructure site.
 23. The method of claim 21, wherein the structure isattached to the stem wall structure before the stem wall structure istransported to the structure site.
 24. The method of claim 12, furthercomprising: building the structure on the stem wall structure.
 25. Themethod of claim 24, wherein the structure is built on the stem wallstructure at the structure site.
 26. The method of claim 24, wherein thestructure is built on the stem wall structure before the stem wallstructure is transported to the structure site.
 27. The method of claim12, wherein the structure is a full-sized house.
 28. The method of claim12, wherein the stem wall structure is transported substantially as oneconnected piece.
 29. A structure comprising: a mobile stem wallstructure.
 30. The structure of claim 29, further comprising: a buildingattached to the mobile stem wall structure.
 31. The structure of claim32, wherein the building is movable with the mobile stem wall structure.32. The structure of claim 30, wherein the building is not legally orphysically transportable via public roads from a home completion site toa home site.
 33. The structure of claim 29, wherein the mobile stem wallstructure includes an exterior surface attachment point or a protrusion.